


Mira

by MadamRed



Series: Writing Prompts (Tumblr) [10]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Crush, F/M, Fluff, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-08
Updated: 2016-11-25
Packaged: 2018-08-13 19:36:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7983655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadamRed/pseuds/MadamRed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Writing prompts requested on Tumblr: “I will always be there to protect you”, “The stars look especially lovely tonight”, “You’re jealous, aren’t you?” & “Can I kiss you?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mira

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing prompts requested on Tumblr: “I will always be there to protect you” & “The stars look especially lovely tonight.”

‘Yes, I knew I could open it!’ you exclaimed happily.

‘We could get in so much trouble for this...,’ Spencer mumbled from behind you. He had been checking if there were any still functioning cameras around the entire time, and there were a few emergency ones. You just didn’t care as much as him.

‘Come on, Spence! Live a little,’ you looked at him over your shoulder and laughed at his conflicted expression as you opened the door to the rooftop of the FBI building.

‘Fine, but if anyone calls us into their office come Monday, this is all on you,’ he glared at you.

‘Right. I’m a big girl, I think I can take it,’ you said as you walked through the door and onto the open space and took a deep breath.

You had been up there a few times before, and no one had ever told you anything, so you figured that it was safe, especially considering that there was a power shortage that was affecting half of the city, including the FBI headquarters.

It was only 8 pm, but Spencer had insisted you two stay put instead of venturing into the darkness that was now downtown. You both usually moved around in the subway, but that day you had taken your car and given him a lift, since you knew you were probably going to stay a little later anyway to finish the paperwork you had from the last case.

When the power went out, and Brad, the night security guy told you that it was already difficult to make your way around the highway at 7 pm, Spencer started spewing statistics at you about crashes during black-outs and convinced you to stay. However, that didn’t mean that you were going to sit idly at the office with only a few candles to light your desk.

Since it was the middle of spring, you decided that it would be a good idea to show Spencer your little hiding place within – _was it within still if it was an open area?_ – Quantico. It could’ve been the candles flickering, but you swore you saw something change in his eyes when you told him you wanted to show him a special place you had found six months ago.

He questioned you when you grabbed your purse and packed as many snacks and drinks you could fit into it from the vending machines at the office, and even more so when you grabbed a blanket Garcia had left behind when she had to, literally, _live_ there for a while.

 _‘(Y/n), what are you doing?’_ he had asked you once you started climbing the indoor emergency stairs at the back of the building with only a flashlight you had found around in the kitchen to light your way.

 _‘You’re the genius here, you tell me,’_ you loved challenging him whenever you could, and you knew he liked the little banters you shared every once in a while.

Once you showed him your little spot and put down Garcia’s blanket on the floor, you patted the space next to you and started unloading all of the unhealthy goodies you had managed to put in your purse.

‘So, this is where you come when you disappear sometimes during working hours, huh?’ he asked you before eating a few chips.

‘Yeap. You cannot see that much of the city from here, but the trees and everything... I don’t know, it helps me unwind and feel safe, you know?’ you shrugged. You had never had to explain how this place made you feel so, you didn’t really think of what you would say.

‘No, I get it. It’s beautiful up here,’ he mumbled looking around and briefly setting his eyes on you before he moved them upwards towards the sky.

‘It’s secluded, in a way, and so calming,’ you told him as you took another deep breath and closed your eyes.

You leaned back and sprawled on the blanket. After a minute, you felt Spencer doing the same.

‘The stars look especially lovely tonight,’ and then he started telling you about the different constellations that were visible from there, since the building was a little far away from the city itself.

‘Do you have a favourite one? Either because of the star itself or because of its name?’ you asked him, moving your eyes from the sky to his face, and he copied your movements as he thought.

‘Mira,’ he replied with a shy smile. ‘It’s one of my favourites because of both, actually. Mira is this red giant star in the constellation of Cetus and it’s between 200 to 400 light years from the Sun. I like it because it’s not visible to the naked eye... you need to make an effort in order to find it.’

 ‘And what does Mira mean?’

‘Johannes Hevelius chose that name in 1662, and it means “wonderful” or “astonishing” in Latin.’

His tone of voice made it seem like he, somehow, wasn’t just talking about the star anymore... You continued asking him a few more questions and you laughed at some of the names stars had as he explained what they actually meant.

‘Why would someone name a star “the broken egg-shells”?’

‘Well, it comes from the Arabic Al-Qaid, and-’ he continued talking about the etymology of the name and then the legend it originated from, but you sort of tuned him out after a while... not because you were not interested but rather because you got distracted by his features.

You had caught yourself staring at him quite a few times around the office, and now, with the moonlight as your only source of light, his profile suddenly _transformed,_ and you found him even more striking than usual. Maybe it was the magic of your favourite spot, or just the fact that you were both alone and you didn’t have that fear at the back of your mind that someone might catch you admiring how handsome he was.

Either way, you were taken aback by his features and, as always, by his intellect. You couldn’t wrap your head around the fact that someone so genuinely caring, smart and downright gorgeous could exist, let alone that you got to see him almost every day for at least eight hours.

As you listened to him rambling about different myths and making connections you could not follow, you felt overwhelmed. Your crush was definitely becoming something else, because you could _feel_ something a lot stronger taking root in your heart, and that familiar warmth spreading in your chest: a weird mixture between excitement and a sort of weight that you would not really be able to get rid of easily.

‘(Y/n)?’ your name falling from his lips made you go back to reality. ‘You okay? You haven’t said anything for at least... eight minutes. I bored you, didn’t I?’ his sad smile made you feel exceedingly guilty for getting distracted.

‘No, no! Not at all. I just got lost in my own thoughts, sorry,’ you said sheepishly.

He turned his body to face you and rested his head on his left hand as he looked down at you. If he looked any closer, he’d be able to tell that you were blushing a little, so you decided that maybe it was time to get back down into the office.

‘It’s getting chilly, isn’t it? We should probably get back down before Brad makes his rounds,’ you started gathering all of the trash you had made and grabbed your purse quickly, leaving the blanket to Spencer.

‘Wait, (Y/n)!’ he scrambled to his feet, took the blanket and hurried to follow you down the stairs.

In your haste to get down, you had forgotten the flashlight, and he knew you had left your phone on your desk. He was scared you might fall.

‘Damn it!’ he heard you mumble when he reached the door to the BAU offices.

‘(Y/n)? You okay? Did you fall?’ he asked frantically once he walked through the open door.

‘What?’ you said as you tried to regain your breath... and a little bit of dignity after you ran away from him.

Before he could ask you what caused you to rush down the stairs, the lights flickered and the power came back on. You sighed in relief knowing that you could now drive back home safely and get away from Spencer for a few hours to get your thoughts back in order before facing your teammates again.

‘You guys are still here?’ Brad’s voice boomed around the empty hallway. ‘The radio says the whole city is back to normal, so by the time you two make it into the city centre, the traffic will surely have cleared.’

And with that, he continued climbing the stairs to the other floors; he was probably avoiding the lift as a precaution.

‘Come on, Spence. I’ll give you a ride home as promised,’ you turned around, collected your things from your desk and waited for your colleague to do the same.

The next couple of weeks, you tried to stay away from him as much as possible. Everyone noticed the sudden change, and it broke Spencer’s heart. He didn’t know what he had done to cause this reaction from you but he wanted to fix it. So, he started leaving you notes on your desk, in your car’s windshield and in any place he could think of to get you to talk to him.

It got to a point when your wallet wasn’t big enough to hold them all anymore, so you put them in a box at home. It wasn’t that you ignored him completely, you still talked to him a little, it was just... every time you saw him, your heart started racing, and you couldn’t help but feel saddened by the fact that you _knew_ you would never be with him in the way that you wanted to.

One day, about a month and a half after the black-out, Spencer had had enough. The team had just returned from a case and you had gone straight to your apartment after a quick goodbye to everyone. So, he took the subway and got off at the station near your building. The security guy at the door knew him, so he was able to make it to your door with no problems.

He knocked and heard you moving towards the door. When you took a peek through the peephole and saw him standing there, you froze and didn’t open your door, hoping that he would go away eventually. He knew this could happen and he had come prepared. Spencer took a small notebook from his messenger bag, scribbled something down, ripped the page and passed it through the small space between the floor and your apartment door.

You picked it up and smiled at his stubbornness: _You can’t keep me away, you know. I don’t give up easily._

He didn’t stop there, though. He wouldn’t even wait for more than a second before he was writing yet another message.

 _Whatever it is that you’re going through, just know that we’re all here..._ I’m _here._

_Just talk to me._

_I miss my best friend._

_Please, open the door, (Y/n)._

He kept going, until he wrote something that made you rethink your actions: _Whatever it is, I will_ always _be there to protect you._

You slowly opened the door and saw him standing there, relief washing over his features.

‘(Y/n)-’

‘Spencer-’

You started speaking at the same time and smiled shyly at each other as a result. You moved out of the way, and he walked into your apartment. A heavy silence engulfed you after you closed the door and you just stood there.

‘Spencer, I’m sorry for how I’ve been treating you. It’s just that I didn’t know what to do about...,’ you caught yourself before you made a mistake.

‘What? Is something wrong?’ he asked, concerned, and took a step forwards. ‘You know you can trust me. A-And the team. We’re all here for you.’

‘I know. Nothing’s wrong. It was just me overreacting,’ you said and hugged him. ‘Thank you.’

‘No problem.’

It was supposed to be a short hug, but when you tried to move away from him, he wouldn’t let you go.

‘Spence?’ you asked, concerned now.

‘I told you I don’t give up easily,’ he told you matter-of-factly, and you laughed a little. And then he whispered something that made your heart jump: ‘Just... a little longer, okay?’

‘Sure,’ you whispered back, scared to ruin the moment, and he held you a little more tightly.

You didn’t know it, but you were so much more to him than just a friend. It had taken him a while to truly see you, but now you made his life so much brighter that he couldn’t possibly imagine you not being there. You were his very own Mira.


	2. Curiouser and Curiouser

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing prompt requested on Tumblr: “You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

You were having a nice cup of tea in the break area by yourself when Garcia came bouncing around, clearly excited about something.

‘(Y/n), (Y/n), (Y/n)! Guess what?’ she whispered with a big smile on her face.

‘What?’ her smile was contagious.

‘No! You have to guess!’ she was pretty much jumping up and down.

‘But you didn’t give me any information, hon!’

‘The thing is...,’ she looked around to make sure everyone was working or not paying attention to you, ‘I found out something that I shouldn’t have come across in the first place.’

‘Penny, no, we’ve talked about this! Remember what happened when you got the team tablets?’ you whispered.

‘Oh, believe me, I _do._ Hotch is a nice guy but when he gets mad...,’ she grimaced at the memories and shuddered. ‘Anyway, that’s not the important part here. Do you wanna know what I discovered or not?!’

‘Always,’ you finished your tea as she took a seat next to you.

‘There’s going to be a fundraiser organised by the Bureau next month but... it’s going to be a freaking gala ball!’ her eyes went big, and she opened her hands in excitement, awaiting your reaction.

‘Oh, I wonder when they will announce it,’ you commented, seemingly uninterested. You got up and washed your mug in the small sink.

‘That’s it?! That’s all I get for this brand new piece of information brought to you by your favourite tech goddess?!’

‘Well, it’s not thaaaaat exciting, isn’t it? I, for one, am already dreading the moment when I’ll have to go and buy the dress and shoes. Ugh, and then we’ll have to exchange pleasantries all night with people. I’m getting tired just thinking about it,’ she was shocked by your attitude.

‘Wow. Remind me not to ever share any happy news with you again,’ she replied in a mocking tone. You shrugged, still standing against the counter.

In that moment, Spencer came into the break area, smiled at you two, poured himself a coffee and walked back to his desk. A few seconds later, Dr Lewis did the exact same thing, except that she didn’t go back to her own desk: she sat on Spencer’s desk instead.

You _very_ obviously followed everything she did with your eyes: the way she smiled at him, her little giggles, how she touched his arm before she got up and left. She had been doing this for a while now, and each time Spencer would look after her with this _look_ on his face, and each time you felt anger bubble up inside you.

In your brief moment of blinding rage, you failed to notice that the tech analyst was watching you like a hawk watches its prey.

‘Curiouser and curiouser,’ mumbled the blonde as she moved her gaze from you to the couple in the bullpen.

‘What?’ you asked her as you stared at Lewis, trying to figure out what her true intentions were.

‘Nothing, nothing,’ she answered and got up from her seat to return to her lair. Something was definitely happening here, and she needed to tread with caution.

 

* * *

The following week brought along a case which kept everyone busy –and exhausted, even after a few days of rest. But then, it happened: the Bureau announced their fundraising event. Every agent in the bullpen had excited grins on their faces, except for you. You actually groaned when the Section Chief announced that attendance was compulsory, but no one heard you thanks to the twenty-something conversations that started in that instant.

You had three weeks to find a suitable gown and shoes for the occasion... and a date, since every agent was allowed, and encouraged, to bring a plus one. You knew who you wanted to ask but, would he agree? Would he think it was weird? Would he want to be seen with you in that kind of event, surrounded by the entire office? You knew that fraternization among employees was not prohibited _per se,_ but it was heavily frowned upon –you had checked, several times actually–, and you really didn’t want to be the cause of any tension or problems down the line for either of you.

You sighed as you had lunch one day. These questions had been plaguing your mind for seven days now, which meant you only had two weeks. Two weeks to put on the big girl pants and ask the guy you liked to come to the damn ball with you. Yeah, you could do it. Easy peasy. Spencer was your best friend. He wouldn’t think you were weird, right?

The positive effects of that little pep talk lasted as long as it took your stomach to digest your chicken salad, which was now trying to come back up. You walked into the break area that afternoon, without paying attention to the people already there, and poured yourself a fresh cup of coffee. You had been repeating that you could do it like a mantra since you finished lunch and, you believed that you had finally gathered up the courage to ask Spencer to be your date to the gala.

Until you heard him laughing at something Lewis had said. You pretended to be struggling with the sugar packet for a second longer to hear what was so funny when Lewis spoke again.

‘Hey, Spencer, I wanted to ask you something,’ she said, and you could hear the smile in her voice even if you had your back to them.

‘Sure, what is it?’ he replied, curious.

‘Would you like to come with me to the gala? I don’t really have anyone to bring as my plus one since I spend all of my free time with the investigation nowadays... What do you say? I think we could have fun, don’t you think?’ your blood ran cold, and you almost dropped the mug in your hand.

‘Well, I-I mean, I-I...,’ he was stuttering, and you internally begged for him to say that he wanted to ask someone else. You closed your eyes and waited for him to continue speaking, but he was interrupted by his companion.

‘Great, then. I’ll send you a message, and we can arrange everything later. Can’t wait,’ and with that, she got up and left, a smug smile on her face.

Spencer was stunned into silence for about a minute, until he remembered that he had files to go through for a consultation he needed to hand in shortly and rushed back to his desk. He would deal with whatever had happened afterwards; although he didn’t quite know _how_ he was going to do that just yet.

In the meantime, you were still standing, shocked at what had just taken place behind you. Penelope came around and saw you there.

‘(Y/n)? Honey, are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,’ she said, concern evident in her voice.

‘Let’s go to your office,’ you mumbled, and she put her arm around your shoulders as you walked.

‘Spill,’ she instructed as she rolled a chair for you to sit on.

‘Lewis just asked Spencer to the gala,’ you told her monotonously, and focused on the coffee, which you had forgotten to put sugar in.

She opened her mouth in surprise but no sounds came out. And then, it clicked. She remembered you glaring at Lewis whenever she was near Reid, and how your voice changed when you mentioned that they had been paired up during a case. She smiled a little despite the fact that you were clearly not happy about this new development.

 ‘You’re jealous, aren’t you?’

You looked up and directed your angry glare at her for a second, before you stood up and paced around the little office.

‘Of course I am! I was _so_ ready to finally ask him out! Especially after the whole month that I ignored the poor guy like he was the freaking plague! We’ve been talking and hanging out more. I thought we were getting somewhere, you know?’ you exclaimed. You were so frustrated that you didn’t care if she knew of your true feelings or not.

‘Oh, this is _so_ good!’ you gave her another angry look before you sat back down. ‘Okay, maybe not. But you can’t deny its juiciness!’

After a few minutes of silence on your part, and ramblings on hers, you got up again.

‘So, are you going to give up or do something about this?’ she asked you, intrigued.

‘Firstly, you can’t tell anyone about _any_ of this,’ you pointed a finger at her, and she nodded eagerly, wanting to know more. ‘Secondly, _yes!_ I’m going to do something about this!’

‘Go get your man!’ she said in celebration of your new-found drive, as you walked away to your desk with a new determination in your eyes.

_If we were playing chess, her move would be considered a check, so now I just need a plan to get myself out of this._

When you got back to the bullpen, Lewis watched you from the corner of her eyes and smiled. You had finally snapped, and her whole scheme was about to get really interesting. If her deductions were right, Spencer was too much of a gentleman to reject her invitation, and you were probably going to try something at the gala to get him back.

She could only hope but, she knew that you two would have continued to dance around each other if she hadn’t intervened.


	3. Cross-check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Writing prompt requested on Tumblr: “Can I kiss you?”

_In chess, the cross-check is an essential tactic in winning some endgames such as those with two queens versus one, or a queen and pawn versus a queen. In these cases, the defence usually tries for a perpetual check and sometimes the stronger side can stop it only by a cross-check._

 

* * *

Yes, a plan. Of course, the problem was that you were running out of time. The team had had another case and now the gala was just a week away!

You had the dress and shoes at least, which you had reluctantly bought with the help of Garcia, but still no date and still no way to get Spencer back... or rather, to get Lewis away from him.

You sighed as you walked past Rossi’s open door and dropped your file on top of the others that were already on Hotch’s desk. _Poor guy,_ you thought, _he’s gonna have to take some of those home_. You had just started making your way out of his office when you collided with someone and let out a little scream.

‘I’m so sorry,’ you heard Rossi say and felt his hands on your upper arms. ‘You okay, kiddo?’

His expression was one of concern, and you nodded as you straightened yourself up, feeling embarrassed at the yelp that escaped your mouth.

‘Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention,’ you tried to laugh it off and began to make your way down the stairs to the bullpen when you froze at the scene below.

Rossi turned around and saw the same as you: Lewis and Reid walking out of the office together, her arm looped around his –although it was more like Reid was being dragged by a very determined Lewis. The senior agent had come out of his own office intrigued by your sigh, but now, if he took that into account along with your more-than-usual introverted attitude lately and _this_ , he knew what was going on in your brilliant, albeit young, brain. He smirked.

‘So, are you all done for the night?’ he asked you, an idea already forming in his head as he dropped his own manila folder on top of yours.

‘Pardon?’ you answered, confused by his tone. You turned around and saw his trademark lopsided smile. ‘Um, yes, Rossi, why do you ask?’

‘Would you like to go and grab something to eat? I’m starving and I would like to discuss something with you, if you’re up to it, of course. I’ve noticed that the cases have been affecting you more than usual lately.’

His deep, brown eyes were drilling holes into yours, and you realised he knew of your little “secret”.

‘Sure... I would love to. I just need to go get my stuff.’

And with that, you were out of the office and following him around the city in your own car in just under five minutes.

After getting into the fancy restaurant and ordering, Rossi wasted no time and started asking you questions about you and Reid.

‘How long?’

‘What do you...?’ you stopped looking around at the paintings hanging around the secluded table you were sitting at and saw the look he was giving you. ‘Ah, _that._ It’s... been about six months. I only really realised the true extent of my feelings during the power cut when Spencer and I stayed at the office waiting for the electricity to come back on. Do you remember? When-?’

‘Yes, I do. So, that’s why you ignored the guy for a month after that?’ he chuckled now, but he recalled the tension that had built during that time and had dreaded the possibility of something bad happening to the dynamic of the team.

‘Hey! I didn’t know what to do, okay? I thought creating some distance might help, you know?’ you said in a small voice and stared at the table cloth.

‘Did it? Help, I mean.’

‘Nope, it only made it worse, I think,’ you concluded as the waiter came with your meals and beverages.

Silence reigned as you both slowly ate the food in front of you. Rossi spoke again once he had managed to make a small dent on his plate of steaming pasta. The man had really been starving.

‘You know, I was thinking, maybe I could help you,’ he said.

‘How?’ you asked, narrowing your eyes at him. What could he possibly gain from helping you other than finally getting rid of that remnant of tension from a few months ago?

‘Let’s just say... I agree with you in that you’d make a better partner for Reid,’ he half mumbled into his food.

 _Oh,_ you thought, making a few connections. You were more than okay with it since now you had a King that could move and help you not only get out of your predicament but also turn this cross-check into a royal one. Dr Tara Lewis had _no_ idea what was coming.

 

* * *

And you were right. The moment you walked into the main dining area where the gala was to take place, Lewis’ eyes were glued to your hand resting on David Rossi’s arm and then to his lips whispering something in your ear as you giggled, pretending you were laughing at what he was saying.

In fact, he was telling you that his plan was working. Oh, how you would’ve loved to see Lewis’ expression but, glancing her way might give it all away, so you and Rossi stayed as far from the two doctors as possible. Eventually, the time for pleasantries and greetings drew to an end and it was finally time to sit down, hear speeches from all of the sponsors of the fundraiser and have dinner.

Since six of the members of the team decided to go with each other –you and Rossi, Reid and Lewis, and Garcia ended up going with Morgan after Savannah announced she had to cover for a colleague of hers at the hospital that night–, there was only one table assigned to the BAU. You greeted everyone and sat down, missing your companion’s wink towards Hotch, who only smirked and continued to talk with Will, JJ and Jack, who was now old enough to attend these kinds of things with his dad.

The atmosphere at the table felt... a little tense when Spencer, who was sitting opposite you, immediately started to talk to you. Lewis kept trying to make a comment or two, but gave up once she realised that his companion was not going to pay attention to her anymore now that you were there. On the outside, she sighed, pretending she was frustrated but, internally, she was happy to see Reid truly laughing for the first time that evening. Sure, they held some very interesting conversations during the cab ride there, but even the genius can sometimes run out of things to say.

After some idle chat among the guests, speeches were delivered, dinner was served, glasses of wine were drunk, and people were getting up to donate to different charities before the dancing part of the evening actually began. While you were coming back to the table along with Garcia and JJ, you were stopped to chat with some agents from another department. However, your attention started drifting when you saw Lewis talking to Rossi, who was now sitting to her right, but her left hand was most definitely not on top of the table.

The thoughts going through your mind were enough to make your eyes go a little bit wild. _Her hand could be resting on her lap, come on, (Y/n)! She wouldn’t do anything inappropriate with her boss a few chairs away in an event like this, would she?_

And then it happened. Rossi’s eyes moved quickly down towards Lewis’ hand and, when he looked up at her, she smirked. Seconds later, Spencer jumped in his seat, looked at Lewis with a bewildered expression and excused himself from the table, getting lost in the sea of people now getting up to dance.

By this point, your jaw was hanging open and Garcia took notice, promptly getting you out of there. But, when you made it to the table, Rossi promptly grabbed your hand, anticipating that you may explode at your teammate, and started twirling you around in the middle of the room, which now served as the dance floor.

‘I assume you saw what happened at the table?’ he asked you when he was closer to your ear. You just nodded, not wanting to shout to be heard. ‘I trust you not to do anything stupid, right? Remember we’re surrounded by pretty much hundreds of agents that work with us.’

‘I know, Rossi! But-’

‘No buts, we have something good going on here. Behave and don’t ruin it,’ he said pointedly, as if he were scolding his child. You nodded again, this time because you just wanted the conversation to end.

Soon enough, the song transformed into a more modern one and Jack was asking you to dance with him. You couldn’t resist and after a while the entire team was dancing together in a small circle.

An hour later, Hotch and his son left, along with JJ and Will because their nanny couldn’t stay the entire night with the boys. That left Lewis and Reid, Morgan and Garcia, and finally Rossi and you at the gala. At some point, you made your way to the restroom and, as you exited the cubicle that was almost as big as your own en-suite bathroom at home, you locked eyes with Lewis in the mirror.

‘Hey, I didn’t hear you come in,’ she said with a bright smile.

‘And I didn’t know you were in here,’ you replied as you washed your hands.

You were the only ones in there; just the faint sounds of the music coming from the main room disturbed the silent scene. You took a moment to look at Lewis as she retouched her make-up a bit. She looked gorgeous in an incredible red dress that stopped just below her knees. It accentuated her toned figure in all the right places; the woman obviously worked out and it paid off.

You looked at yourself in the mirror, checking your own reflection and adjusting your long, dark blue dress, and thought of just how deluded you had been to think that you could ever compete with someone like her.

‘Hey, (Y/L/N), promise me you will dance with me before the night is over, okay?’ she asked you with another dazzling smile and left before you could find your voice again.

‘Sure...,’ you replied, still looking at yourself and sighed.

Having spent too much time wallowing in self-pity, you decided to just walk back to the team’s table, not really feeling like dancing anymore. As you were walking, you felt a presence behind you. You turned around and saw no one, so you just continued. When you reached the table and sat down, you heard the chair next to you being moved and jumped a little.

‘Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you,’ you heard Spencer’s voice above the loud music. ‘I called your name as you walked by the bar but you probably didn’t hear me.’

‘No, it’s okay, you just took by surprise,’ you looked over at him and admired his face for a few seconds longer than a _friend_ would have. ‘So, how’s your night been?’

‘Fine,’ he shrugged. You gave him a look and he told you the truth. ‘Actually? I’m bored. Lewis is amazing and all but... we don’t really have a lot in common other than our job, you know?’

You pursed your lips, nodded and turned towards the dance floor where people were obviously having lots of fun. Spencer took the opportunity to admire _you_ this time around: your face, the hairdo that exposed your beautiful neck, the illusion neckline of your dress, and how the colour of the gown contrasted with your skin... you looked radiant.

‘Hey, (Y/n),’ he called your name and you turned around as he took a box out of his pocket and put it on the table between the two of you.

‘What’s this?’ you asked, curiously eyeing the black velvety box.

‘It was your birthday last week, wasn’t it? We were in the middle of the case, and I didn’t want to cause a distraction so... happy birthday, (Y/n),’ he smiled shyly and pushed the box closer towards you.

‘You remembered,’ you whispered. Truth be told, you had been so wrapped up, you almost forgot it yourself.

You opened the box and there was a delicate silver chain with a [crescent moon and star pendant](https://img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/6308664/il_fullxfull.346199784.jpg) inside. Your mind went to the night on the rooftop and him telling you about that star, Mira, a star that couldn’t easily be seen. You looked up at him, speechless at the thoughtfulness of the gift, and the possible implications of what it could mean for your guys’ relationship.

‘Spence... I just... thank you,’ you finally breathed out.

‘I take it you like it?’ he asked, his smile growing bigger at your apparent lack of words. ‘I know it’s not much but I’ve wanted to give it to you ever since I saw it at this shop near my apartment a few months ago and-’

‘It’s perfect,’ you said, resting your hand on top of his on the table. ‘Really, thank you,’ you leaned forward, kissed him on the cheek and hugged him.

‘I’m glad you liked it,’ he whispered in your ear as he squeezed you a little tighter.

You sat back down after a moment but still had your hands resting on his shoulders. He was smiling at you and you got lost in his hazel eyes. You realised the position you were in and thought that you would never get another chance like this and so you followed your instincts.

‘Spence, I-I,’ you were stuttering because of how nervous you were. You took a steadying breath and decided to just go for it. ‘Spencer Reid, I’ve liked you, for quite some time now, and I-I think we could be great together, if you wanted us to be... together, that is.’

 _At least it started out well enough,_ said the little voice inside your head.

In the meantime, Spencer sat there with his own jaw hanging open now, not knowing how to react.

‘Spencer...?’ you asked hesitantly. You felt so embarrassed. ‘I’m sorry, I probably ruined our entire relationship. Don’t worry. I’ll just go home right now and we can pretend this never happened, okay? I won’t say anything if you don’t, so I’ll just...,’ you got up and grabbed your purse but left the box on the table. You didn’t need a reminder of your obvious mistake.

‘Don’t!’ he caught your arm before you had a chance to actually move away from him and he stood up as well. ‘Please, don’t leave. If you do, if you distance yourself from me again, I-I have no idea what I’d do. You... I told you, some stars are harder to be seen, or even to discover sometimes, but once you do, they shine brighter than all of the others do.’

‘They do?’ you said, the hint of a smile already making its way to your face.

‘Yes. You... When I saw you for the first time, and I mean when I _really_ saw you, you shone so bright that I felt blinded. You mean a lot to me. I... care deeply about you, as a colleague at first, as a friend once I got to know you a little bit, and now? I can’t see my future without you there to guide me through it all,’ he finished his little speech and got closer to you.

‘Spence-’

‘(Y/n), can I kiss you?’ he asked softly.

‘Yes,’ you replied, already breathless.

Your lips connected and it was everything you had ever thought it would be and nothing like it at the same time. It was a new and completely exhilarating experience. It was cut short because of lack of air, but you rectified it by kissing him over and over again, not remembering where you were or who you were surrounded by.

However distracted you two were, the rest of your table wasn’t. Morgan and Garcia were taking picture after picture to send to the others later, while Rossi went to sit at another, empty table, not wanting to interrupt your little moment. Lewis followed him and sat next to him.

‘My plan worked,’ she said triumphantly.

‘Indeed it did,’ he agreed as he tore his eyes away from you and Reid and focused on her. ‘Yet I would like to ask you why you didn’t care to fill me in on it and had to hear that you were coming here, with the genius, from _Garcia.’_

‘That, my dear, is because our relationship is still a secret. You said that you didn’t want anyone to know since you didn’t want to be the first to “disrupt the team’s dynamic” ever since _their,’_ she pointed at you and Reid still kissing, ‘situation six months ago.’

Rossi knew he was cornered and sighed. _Women,_ he thought bitterly but smiled at his companion, who was now smirking because she knew she had won that one.

‘Come on,’ he said as he got up, bringing Lewis with him. ‘I’ve been stood up by my date and still have a lot of dancing to do before I can call it a night.’

‘Fine,’ she replied, as if she didn’t want to dance with him.

‘By the way,’ Rossi began saying towards the end of the song, trying to appear calm, ‘where did you put your hand to make Reid jump like that earlier?’


End file.
